Itron
ITRI
recently announced that it is collaborating with Baltimore Gas & Electric (“BGE”) to deploy 260,000 Itron smart streetlights to lower energy consumption.
Itron’s smart streetlights are designed to enhance safety of the neighborhood. These can detect lamp and lighting power supply failures at the time of occurrence and send notification to maintenance crew for inspection. Immediate inspection of problems associated with the streetlights is critical in avoiding motor accidents.
BGE can control lighting levels immediately or on a scheduled basis for these streetlights. It will also be able to regulate streetlights with on/off and dimming functionality, added Itron.
Itron, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Itron, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart
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Itron, Inc. Quote
BGE will be utilizing Itron multi-purpose IIoT network to connect the smart streetlights. These streetlights will be deployed across BGE’s service territory through 2026.
Additionally, Itron’s Streetlight.Vision Central Management System solution will aid BGE to manage and monitor the smart streetlights and will also allow BGE to add other smart applications to the network going ahead.
Itron is one of the major suppliers of a broad array of standard, advanced and smart meters, and meter communication systems, including networks and communication modules, sensors, data analytics and services, and software and devices globally.
The company plans to expand its global presence in the utility sector with numerous collaborations.
At present, Itron’s performance is being affected due to unexpected supplier decommitments, inadequate component deliveries and the irregular timing of crucial components arriving at the company’s factories despite a robust customer demand environment. Also, softness across all business segments and the company’s exit from select product lines in the Device Solutions segment are headwinds.
In the last reported quarter, revenues came in at $420.9 million, which lagged the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 8.4%. The top line declined 14% (down 9% on a constant-currency basis) year over year. The company expects supply-chain constraints to continue in the fourth quarter of 2022. For the fourth quarter, the company expects revenues to be between $420 and $460 million.
Despite headwinds, the company expects increased demand for electric vehicles and distributed energy resource management to drive customer bookings. In the third quarter, the company’s bookings were $578 million. The company continues to build up its inventory to improve backlog conversion and is focusing on boosting its operational footprint through its asset-light strategy. The company is looking to lower discretionary spending, which bodes well.
Itron currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Shares of ITRI have lost 18.7% compared with the
sub-industry
’s decline of 13.4% in the past year.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Stocks to Consider
Some better-ranked stocks worth consideration from the broader technology space are
Arista Networks
ANET
,
Blackbaud
BLKB
and
Plexus
PLXS
. Arista Networks and Plexus currently sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), while Blackbaud carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see t
he complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Arista Networks’ 2022 earnings is pegged at $4.37 per share, up 8.2% in the past 60 days. The long-term earnings growth rate is anticipated at 17.5%.
Arista Networks’ earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the last four quarters, the average being 12.7%. Shares of ANET have decreased 3.2% in the past year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Blackbaud’s 2022 earnings is pegged at $2.59 per share, up 1.6% in the past 60 days. The long-term earnings growth rate is anticipated at 4%.
Blackbaud’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in the last four quarters, the average being 4.9%. Shares of BLKB have declined 27.7% in the past year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Plexus’ fiscal 2023 earnings is pegged at $5.98 per share, up 8.9% in the past 60 days.
Plexus’ earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in three of the last four quarters, the average being 17.5%. Shares of PLXS have increased 13.2% in the past year.
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